


Father

by Sinclaironfire



Series: Unsung Hero [1]
Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: And that's what matters most, Blows to Scrooge's Delicate Ego, Donald and Della grow up, Family Adventures, Family Feels, Get it while it's hot, It takes him a while but he gets it, Ludwig has his debut here, Ludwig is the "Cool" Uncle, Matilda is having none of it, Recently orphaned Donald and Della, Scrooge acts like a Dad, Scrooge gets the hang of parenting, Scrooge gets to raise them, Scrooge is a bit stupid, Scrooge is basically a Dad, Scrooge is good person, Scrooge isn't the "Cool" Uncle, Scrooge reconnects with his family, Who wants some angst?, Without parents, adorable children, he does his best
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-22
Updated: 2018-02-12
Packaged: 2019-02-05 13:11:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12795300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sinclaironfire/pseuds/Sinclaironfire
Summary: Donald and Scrooge had a difficult relationship but it did not deter Donald from viewing Scrooge as his father





	1. New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Onetimerequester](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Onetimerequester/gifts).



> For Onetimerequester and Oreo Queen who wanted the story. This story kicks off the 'Donald Feels' Series! Woo-Hoo!

It never crossed Donald’s mind that he would ever outlive his parents.

Yes, he knew of death and that when a person died, they went on to a  better place but being six, Donald never thought that Della and his parents would ever die. How could he? His mother was strength and determination incarnate. His father was cool and calm. Hardly anything would ruffle his feathers. They complimented each other well. Come hell or high water, there wasn’t a challenge that they couldn’t overcome or defeat – barring, of course, a drunk driver. Hortense and Quackmore died almost instantly. They did not linger but left their darling children parentless.

The funeral took place on a beautiful and warm Saturday afternoon. Dressed in his nicest black suit and Della in her best black dress, they watched their parents’ coffins lowered into the ground. Della had held back her tears but once the coffins disappeared into the graves, she broke down and cried. Donald kept quiet. He held back everything. He couldn’t cry now. He was the oldest and Della needed him. It didn’t matter that he was a minute older than her, he was still the oldest and therefore it was his responsibility to look after her. What kind of big brother would he be if he couldn’t comfort his own twin?

“We’re gonna be alright, Della,” Donald whispered. “I’ve got your back.”

She wiped her tears on her sleeve and nodded. “I’ve got your back too.”

They held hands and without ever needing to say another word, the twins made solemn vow that they would always be there for each no matter what. They had to be, they were all they had left in the world.

 

In the weeks following their parents’ sudden demise, Donald and Della lives finally returned to some form stability. They moved in with their grandmother out in the country and with time, fell into a happy routine of waking up early, doing chores around the farm, and spending the day lazing about the open wide pastures. They missed their parents dearly but were getting on as best as could be expected. Della had Donald and Donald had Della. Whenever the one’s heart started to ache, the other was right there to make everything better.

Things slowly improved but then came time to attend another funeral. To the utter shock of the McDuck/Duck family, Daphne and her husband Goostave died in an eating contest of all things. It was decried as an impossible accident. After all, Daphne was lucky. She had uncanny luck on her side. When she wanted to see sunshine, the clouds would part just for her. If she missed the rain, storm clouds would appear on cue. Daphne never faced danger. Many in the family assumed that if by some bizarre chance Daphne did face disaster in any way, she would shake her head full of golden curls and say, “Not today,” and then it would go away. To die in an eating contest made of mockery of her naturally good luck and that a life so utterly blessed should be cut short.

Her only son, Gladstone, was now an orphan as well and their grandmother was faced with the challenge of raising not two, but three children. It would be an understatement to say that Gladstone’s insufferable luck and Donald’s uncontrollable temper caused bouts of fights and arguments. However, it was one bright sunny day that caused an undeniable rift between Donald and Gladstone. The latter missed his mother and father dearly and when Donald had attempted to console his cousin, Gladstone stuck his bill in the air and said, “Bad things don’t happen to lucky people like me! They happen to bad luck people like you!”

What happened next could only be described as a smackdown in every sense of the word. Donald, channeling all the McDuck rage that his little body could hold, pulled back his arm and punched Gladstone as hard as he could. Gladstone’s beak was broken in half and excluding the loss of his parents, the event would be considered the first strike of bad luck he would ever have. The two boys wrestled on the floor, cursing and throwing insults. Gladstone couldn’t land a single hit on his cousin but Donald landed plenty. Their fight was broken up by their grandmother with her holding Gladstone up and Della holding Donald back.

“Separate corners!” their grandmother shouted. “NOW!”

Donald and Della were put into their rooms upstairs while their grandmother drove Gladstone to the hospital.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Della said, crossing her arms. “You could have really hurt him.”

“Good! He deserved it!”

“Donald!” Della scolded

“What? He does! He said that I was bad luck! That momma and poppa dying was bad luck!”

Della frowned. “I know but you didn’t have to punch him so bad.”

“Did too. I had to teach him a lesson. Momma always said that you don’t let people walk over you.”

“Momma also said that family helps family and that wasn’t helping Gladstone.”

“It was too! It helped him know that I don’t like him talking bad about momma and poppa,” Donald sniffled. “Just cause nothing bad ever happens to him doesn’t make the rest of us unlucky.”

Della hugged her twin tightly. “We’re pretty lucky when you think about it.”

“What do ya mean?”

“We’ve got each other. I know you’ve got my back and I’ve got yours. Gladdy doesn’t have anyone. He must be pretty lonely.”

“He’ll be fine. He always lands on his feet.”

“Except for this time,” Della smirked a little. “That was a mean punch. You broke his beak.”

“He’ll be fine,” Donald repeated. “Gladdy always is.”

When Gladstone returned from the hospital, his face was heavily bandaged. His beak was broken but he was, for the most part, perfectly fine. The doctors called him incredibly lucky due to lack of trauma his face could have taken. Gladstone would be fine just like Donald predicted.

With this latest fight, the children’s grandmother had to make a nuclear option. The children had to be separated. Gladstone’s luck and Donald’s temper were never meant to be mixed and any further interaction was what she called “The worst idea in the history of the world”. Gladstone’s luck could not be tamed in any manner and but Donald and his temper could be taught to be controlled. So it was agreed that the best person to help Donald learn to manage his temper would be from the side of the family to which he inherited his frightful rage.

Unfortunately, the members of the McDuck family were few and far in between. Downy and Fergus had died long ago. Darling Matilda, Hortense’s sister and the oldest McDuck, had jetted off to Germany with her latest beau, a brilliant but dotty man of science named Ludwig Von Drake. Communications were difficult to maintain for the eldest McDuck. Every other month, Matilda and her suitor were off to some symposium or conference in Switzerland, Asia, and South America or wherever they were needed, to discuss the latest problems that were plaguing the world. Getting Matilda on the phone was a miracle. Although she was a lovely woman and adored her niece and nephew and Ludwig jumped at the chance to educate and show the children the world, it was decided that all the traveling that Matilda and Ludwig did was not good for the children.

“They need stability,” Elvira said, standing firm. “And I don’t like the idea of my grandchildren leaving the country. What if something happens? I’ve already lost a daughter and a son. I don’t want to lose my grandchildren abroad.”

Neither Matilda nor Ludwig could fight against her arguments. Therefore, it was decided that Donald and Della would move in with the only remaining member of their maternal side of the family: Scrooge McDuck.

The idea was a difficult one to comprehend. Scrooge McDuck was absolutely brilliant when it came to business. He made his fortune by being tougher than the toughies and smarter than the smarties. When it came to a financial venture, he was sure to succeed. However, when it came to family matters, the brilliant businessman faltered and failed.

In the pursuit of monetary success, Scrooge had faced the world and its challenges alone and it had made him a bitter and miserly person. No one in his family had seen much of the famous capitalist since his fallout with his sisters. He didn’t show to the funeral but despite what many would call his severing ties with his family, Matilda was sure that the children would do well with her brother.

“You don’t know Scroogey like I do,” she said, buffering Elvira’s complaints at placing the children with someone like Scrooge. “He’s had a hard life but he’s very sweet,” she giggled. “He would hold my hand as we would walk the street and tell me not to take any gruff from men. Scrooge is a bit rough around the corners but he’s got a good soul. Elvira, you mustn’t tell anyone this, but Scrooge is an absolute softie when it comes to children. He’s a marshmallow, I swear it. Donald and Della would do well with him and I suspect that my brother getting to know his niece and nephew would do him a world of good too. It’s not right for my brother to stay all isolated like he does, it’s not right at all.”

So it was decided, the children would go to live with their uncle Scrooge but Matilda and Ludwig, not wanting to throw the young children into what would be a cold reception, made an unprecedented stop in the states.

“Hallo, meine lieblinge!” Ludwig greeted the children warmly the day he and Matilda came to escort them to Scrooge’s manor. “Du siesht heute gut aus!”

“Uncle Ludwig!” they cheerfully cried as they all but tackled him into a hug.

Ludwig and Matilda were not married. Matilda swore off marriage after a string of unhappy and unfulfilling relationships. Ludwig was the longest surviving man to pursue her heart but he wasn’t the marrying sort either. Science would be his first love but that didn’t stop Matilda from holding a special place in his heart or from him considering Donald and Della family.

“How are you, my darlings?”

“We’re good!” Donald said, hugging Ludwig.

“We missed you!” said Della, also hugging her uncle.

He hugged them back. “And I as vell! Look how tall you have gotten! You are growing like a tree.”

“What? I don’t a get a hug?” Matilda smiled.

The children rushed to their aunt and hugged her. “We missed you too!” Della assured.

“Did you like Hawaii?” asked Donald.

“Hawaii was lovely. I’ll tell you more about it in the car. Now, go get your things.”

Donald and Della dashed off to collect their suitcases. Neither one was excited about living with their recluse of an uncle but if Aunt Matilda and Uncle Ludwig thought that it was a good idea, then it must be a good idea. Donald and Della bid farewell to their grandmother clambered into their aunt’s car, and left the pleasant countryside for the city. The car ride was filled with talk of Ludwig and Matilda’s travels, how Donald and Della were doing, and of course science. Astounding breakthroughs of scientific miracles dominated the conversation before long.

“Did you really travel through the Amazon?” gasped Della.

“Oh ja, very interesting, very dangerous rapids. Now, that is one boat ride you vill never forget,” he laughed.

“He nearly fell in seven times,” said Matilda, who drove. “Trying to take photos of the wildlife.”

“She had to tie me to the mast!” Ludwig added cheerfully. “I almost lost my camera.”

“I wanna go to the Amazon!” said Donald. “I wanna ride the rapids!”

“The boat ride is a little bumpy,” winked Matilda, “It’d be easier to fly in.”

“Can you take us flying?” asked Della.

“Maybe,” she replied. “When you’re older. We’ll all go somewhere nice.”

Upon arriving at the stately McDuck manor, there was a lack of a welcoming committee. The doors remained shut, the curtains were drawn, and there was virtually no sign of life within the manor. Donald and Della stared in awe of the home they would be living in for the foreseeable future.

Ludwig gawked at the imposing manor house. “Hoo, boy, that is one big home.”

“He likes his space,” commented Matilda, getting out. “Honey, can you get the kids’ bags?”

“Sure thing, sweetie.”

“Do we really have to live with Uncle Scrooge?” whispered Della as she and her brother left the safety of their aunt’s car.

“We’ve never met him before,” said Donald frowning at the manor.

Matilda bent down to the children’s level. “Sweethearts, your Uncle Scrooge is a lovely person. I swear it.”

“Momma said he was mean,” said Donald.

“And that he didn’t like us,” added Della.

Matilda hugged her niece and nephew. “Scrooge does like us and he can be mean but you must be nice to him.”

“Why?” asked Della. “If he’s not nice to us then why should we be nice to him?”

“Yeah!” agreed Donald.

“Because family helps family and Scrooge is family. Now, look here, Scrooge has had a difficult life. Things haven’t been easier for him.”

“But he’s a bajillionaire!” exclaimed Donald.

“If that’s loss I wonder what winning looks like,” mused Della.

“A lot like losing but with family. I know that it might be hard to understand but Scrooge loves us. He just doesn’t know how to show it.”

Neither Della nor Donald were convinced by Matilda’s words. They held each other’s hands and without ever needing to say it, they knew that the other had their backs. Whatever Scrooge McDuck was like, they would not be bullied by him. Family or not, they refused to be pushed around by him.

Matilda went up to the door and rang the bell. Almost instantly, the grand wooden doors were thrown open with a bang. Ludwig and the children jumped with fright but Matilda remained as cool and calm as ever.

“Hello baby brother,” smiled Matilda sweetly.

Scrooge scowled and crossed his arms. “Sister.”

“You look well.”

“And you look…engaged?”

Matilda turned her head towards Ludwig and grinned fondly at her beau who had launched into an impromptu lecture about plants and trees. “We’re not engaged. We’re comfortable. What about you Scroogey? Has anyone melted your heart? Made your knees weak?”

Scrooge was unmoved. He was as cold as ice. “Are those the children?”

“Yes,” answered Matilda. She crossed her arms and sighed. “They remind me a lot of Hortense.”

“The boy looks like his father,” said Scrooge quietly.

“Quackmore, yeah. He’ll be a handsome fella when he grows up. I, uh, I didn’t see you at the funerals.”

“I wasn’t invited.”

She scoffed. “You don’t need an invitation to say goodbye to your sister.”

“We didn’t exactly leave on good terms,” he murmured. “She wouldn’t have wanted me to-“

“She missed you,” said Matilda. “You’ve got a chance to make things right, Scrooge. Don’t mess this up.”

“I won’t.”

“Good,” she nodded. “Try to smile. I don’t want the children to be spooked,” she whispered. “Children! Come say hello to your uncle!”


	2. A Tense Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scrooge and Matilda talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I live!

Dinner that evening was a tense affair. Matilda insisted that she and Ludwig stayed the night to make sure that the children acclimated to their new home. While Donald and Della were more than happy to spend dinner chatting away with their dear Uncle Ludwig, Scrooge stewed at the far end of the table, picking his meal apart, and muttering under his breath. His behavior put Matilda in a sour mood. She kept shooting him dirty looks. Finally, Matilda had enough of her brother’s pouting and got up. Without a word, she pulled him from his seat and sat him down with the rest of the family.

“Wouldn’t want you to miss out on the conversation,” she said with a smile that sent shivers down everyone’s spine.

“Thank you,” Scrooge stiffly answered.

Donald and Della nervously shared a look. They were bright children and could read the room just as well as the next person. The way that their aunt and uncle reacted towards each other was frightening. They could feel a fight about to break out.

“I bet you ten bucks auntie wins,” Della whispered.

“I dunno, I think Scrooge could hurt someone pretty badly with that cane of his,” Donald whispered back.

“What are we whispering about?” whispered Ludwig to Della.

“Family fighting,” she answered softly.

“Oh…I’ll put money down on Matilda,” he said as quietly as possible.

While a fight never did break out, the tension between Scrooge and Matilda was palpable. Each little glare that they shared added fuel to the fire. A fierce battle of passive aggressive actions was being waged and neither Scrooge nor Matilda were going to give up until either of them won. Ludwig, who gave up playing mediator between the contentious siblings, excused himself to get Donald and Della ready for bed. Once they were alone, Scrooge and Matilda’s silent war erupted.

“You’ve got some nerve!” Scrooge shouted. “Bossing me around my own house like you’re in charge of the place!”

“You promised you would watch the children and the entire time we’ve been here you’ve been sulking away in some dark corner!”

“I didn’t want to watch the kids! You bullied me into it!”

“Me? Bully the high and mighty Scrooge McDuck? The man who conquered the Klondike?” Matilda laughed. “That might have worked when we were children but not when you’re an adult, Scroogey!”

“Stop calling me that!”

“No! I am giving you the chance to get to know your family! Don’t you care about that? About the children?”

Scrooge scowled. “I already know my family!”

“Then what’s Donald’s favorite toy?” Matilda asked. “What’s Della’s greatest dream? What are their fears?”

“What kind of nonsense is th-“

“Donald’s favorite toy is the little tugboat Ludwig got him. Della wants to be a pilot. The children feared losing their parents but now they’re scared of losing each other,” she said as fast as lightning. “Scrooge, you’ve got a once in a lifetime chance to get to know two wonderful children. Why you are so intent on screwing it up!”

“I’m not doing anything!”

“YES! That is exactly the point! You’re not doing anything! You didn’t say a single thing to the children after they arrived or during dinner. You treated them like they weren’t even there!”

“What am I supposed to say to them? “Sorry your parents are dead and by the way, I’m your uncle”?”

“It would be a start, yes!” Matilda shouted. She sighed and sat down in the armchair. “These children need someone who can care for them.”

“Then why don’t you do it?” Scrooge said, exasperatedly. “Don’t tell me that you don’t have some maternal inkling in your body.”

“I would take them if I could but Elvira doesn’t – “

“Elvira who?”

Matilda glared. “Daphne and Quackmore’s mother. She’s lost both of her children in less than three months of each other. She’s scared of losing her grandchildren abroad. Besides, Donald needs someone to show him how to control his temper.”

“Bah! Temper? On that little pipsqueak? What’s the worse he’s going to do? Scream and cry?”

She stared at her brother and said in a manner of fact tone, “He broke his cousin’s beak in half with a single blow.”

“What?”

“You heard me.

Scrooge sat adjacent to his sister. “What brought that about?”

She sighed. “His cousin, Gladstone, was feeling down about his parents dying. Donald tried to comfort him and Gladstone implied that Hortense and Quackmore dying might have been because of Donald’s rotten luck.”

All of sudden, Scrooge could feel himself back on a riverboat and hearing the mocking laughter as his captors read of his mother’s death. “Should have punched the brat harder,” he muttered, his fists clenched.

“What was that?”

“Nothing,” he answered a bit too quickly. “I’ll do it. I’ll watch the children.”

“And Donald’s temper?” Matilda asked expectantly.

“Consider it taken care of.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A chapter wherein Scrooge has the emotional maturity of a five-year-old.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writer's block has nearly killed me but I have survived it.

 

Early, the next morning, Ludwig and Matilda were due back in Berlin. Donald and Della were sad to see their beloved aunt and uncle go and dreaded the time that they would spend with their misery and secluded Uncle Scrooge.

“Please don’t go,” Donald begged.

“Can’t you take us with you?” Della asked.

“Now children,” Ludwig sniffled. “I vould love to but your granny knows best and your uncle Scrooge is for the best. Now, now, no more of the sad faces. Vhat do I always say?”

“Never eat an apple in the dark,” chorused Donald and Della.

“Oh! My darlings,” Ludwig hugged his niece and nephew tightly. “Ve vill vrite the moment we land.”

Scrooge couldn’t help but roll his eyes at Ludwig’s over emotional display. The man was going off to Berlin, not war. Matilda noticed and nudged Scrooge sharply in the ribs. The glare she gave her dear brother carried one message: Do not insult my Ludwig.

“Alright, children, where’s my hug?”

Donald and Della raced to their aunt. Both were trying hard not to cry. Matilda was close to tears herself. She hugged them and said, “Be good and be nice to Scrooge, children.”

“Yes, we will.”

“Good.” Matilda kissed them on their foreheads and stood up. She turned to her brother and said, “And you…do try to behave.”

Scrooge scoffed but after another loving nudged and glare from his sister, Scrooge was prompted to say, “I will be on my best behavior.”

“Thank you, dear brother.”

Matilda and Ludwig got into their car and drove away. Donald and Della stayed on the steps of the manor house and kept their eyes on the car until it disappeared from sight. They held hands and looked at each other for support.

“I’ve got your back,” whispered Della.

“And I’ve got yours,” whispered Donald back, squeezing his sister’s hand.

No matter what happened, no matter how mean and cruel their Uncle Scrooge would be, they would always have each other. Scrooge, now faced with the reality of raising two children on his own, sighed deeply. Children…children, children, children…what did he know about children? His own experience as one was no longer the social norm. Apparently, there were laws now about children working in all sorts of conditions. Little tykes like Donald and Della were meant to have a childhood and to be free from adult worries like bills, money, and putting food on the table.

All Scrooge knew was work. So as to what children were meant to do instead of working now was what? Did children still like marbles? Was that still a thing that children did? Scrooge frowned. This would be harder than he would imagine. Nevertheless, the task was now placed upon him to raise Donald and Della.

“Alright, children,” Scrooge said, mimicking his sister’s rousing call, “To your rooms and eh, keep to yourself.”

“We don’t want to go to our rooms,” Della said. “It’s nice outside. We want to play.”

Playing, okay good. Children still played. That was good. “And what will you be playing?” It was the prudent question to ask. It was what Matilda or Elvira would ask and Scrooge not wanting to be a careless caregiver asked the question too.

Della looked to Donald and asked, “Cops and Robbers?”

“Cops and Robbers!” Donald grinned.

Scrooge winced. “Why in the dismal downs would you ever want to play something like Cops and Robbers?”

“Cause it’s fun?” Donald replied.

“Robbing people is not fun,” Scrooge shut down the idea as fast as he could. “I don’t want to hear anything about robbing people in my home.”

“Fine,” Della sighed. “Donald, you wanna play adventurers?”

At the mention of adventure, the children had Scrooge’s full attention. Finally! He knew that anyone who was related to him would never dream of a life of crime, even if it was the stuff of imagination. They were children but they had the McDuck blood pumping through their veins.

“We can pretend that we’re in the Amazon!” suggested Donald.

Scrooge nodded at the thought of the Amazon. The children had good tastes. The wild jungle was full of danger and treasure and threats. It was the perfect place to pretend that they were in.

“Yeah!” Della laughed. “Going down the rapids!”

Scrooge was surprised that the children wanted to pretend that they were going the rapids. He’d gone down them himself and the rapids were deadly. If the children were going to play adventurers in the rapids then it called for mass quantities of water. This meant, if the children were as smart as they looked, they would be playing near or in the pool. Children near water…that required adult supervision, he was sure of it.

“Like Uncle Ludwig did!”

Scrooge’s train of thought was derailed. “Ludwig?!”

“Who else?” asked Donald, “He went to the Amazon.”

“So have I!” said Scrooge. “I’ve faced more dangers that Ludwig has!”

“But Ludwig is…” there was no easy way to say it but it had to be said. “Ludwig is cool.”

“I’m cool!” Scrooge protested.

“You’re not ‘Uncle Ludwig” cool,” rebutted Donald. “He’s been all around the globe!”

“He’s visited lost tribes and gone where no one’s ever been before!” said Della, her eyes aglow with admiration. “He’s a hero!”

Scrooge sputtered and scoffed. “Excuse me! I’m the adventurer! I’ve been to every continent on the globe, every country there is and then some! I’m much cooler than Ludwig!”

Donald scowled. “Prove it!”


	4. Fight

Scrooge McDuck was fabulously rich and insanely miserly. Everyone who knew of him, knew that he lead an extravagant life. Scrooge lived in a manor, had a nice car, and owned his own private jet. He went out on expeditions to parts of the world that few people ever got to see let alone visit. He had a treasure trove of lost artifacts and knickknacks. He built his company from the ground up and kept it on the rise which made him the Richest Duck in the World. Scrooge’s wealth was beyond compare and his riches were only outdone by his greed. No one could get close enough to Scrooge or had a cause deemed worthy enough to be given a piece of his fortune.

When news broke that Scrooge was now de facto parent for the Duck siblings, many thought that the twins would lead a charmed life. After all, Scrooge McDuck lacked a spouse and had no children of his own. It was inevitable to think that Donald and Della would find themselves being spoiled rotten by their uncle but alas, this was not to be.

Scrooge McDuck did not have a charmed childhood. In fact, he did not have a childhood to speak of. As soon as he was able to fend for himself, Scrooge was sent out into the world to shine shoes. From there, it was one job to the next, seeking his fortune that would surely restore the McDuck Clan to prosperity. Scrooge McDuck was never a child, he was a worker.

He knew money and a hard work ethic. What did he know of bedtimes and toys and whatever else that children needed? Scrooge McDuck left Donald and Della alone. It wasn’t done out of spite or abuse. Scrooge simply didn’t know what to do with them. Donald and Della were left to their own devices. They spent their days roaming the manor or outside on the expansive grounds. Neither twin saw much of Scrooge during the day. He was gone before they were up. When it came to dinners, Scrooge never said much. He would sit at his end of the table and Donald and Della would sit at theirs. Sometimes, he would listen into their conversations, and once Della swore she heard him laugh, but he never joined.

Scrooge McDuck was a loner and Donald was thankful for it.

Being recently orphaned, people often fussed over him and Della. The support was appreciated but Donald and Della weren’t blind to the looks that adults gave them. The never-ending pity was revolting. To be out on their own, even if it was under their uncle’s roof, was a welcomed relief from the babying and mollycoddling that the twins often received. And yet, while their freedom was cherished, the twins couldn’t help but wonder about Scrooge who boasted that he was cooler than Uncle Ludwig.

“Do you think that he’s really been to every continent?” Della asked as they traversed down an unknown hall. They were playing explorers.

“Nah. I think he just says that he has.”

“Do you think he’s lonely?”

Donald shrugged. If Scrooge was lonely he didn’t make it known. “He’s a loner.”

Down the hall, taking a left and a right, Donald and Della found themselves in a new room. It had dark paneled wood and dark green painted walls. Della successfully found the light switch. The twins were in a room full of paintings starring than Scrooge McDuck. The masterfully done works of art captured his greatest triumphs and successes. Donald rolled his eyes. “I thought we were going to find something cool!”

“It’s kinda cool.”

“No,” Donald corrected. “It’s depressing. Who keeps a bunch of stuffy old paintings of himself?”

“Hey! Look, there’s one of him at the North Pole!”

“Pfft. He could have had someone just paint that.” Donald was thoroughly unimpressed.

“That is sad,” Della was forced to agree with her brother’s sentiment. “What do you think Uncle Ludwig is doing now?”

“Probably saving lives or making scientific breakthroughs, you know, Uncle Ludwig stuff.”

“I miss him.”

“I miss him too.” Donald nodded and sniffled. “He said he would write to us, didn’t he?”

“Yeah. Maybe there’s something in the mail today.”

The twins eagerly rushed out of the manor house. They went down the hill to the mailbox. Their minds were on the letters that they hoped were waiting for them and not on their surroundings. Neither Donald nor Della saw the teenagers riding their bikes down the street towards them. They saw Donald and Della and knew that they had a gem of an opportunity at hand.

Rich kids.

Small kids.

An easy target.

Before Donald and Della knew what was happening, they found themselves in fight. The teens intended to rob them but they picked the wrong target. They fought bravely. Della bit anyone who laid a hand on her. Donald punched and kicked wildly. Together, they were unstoppable force. The teens fled but Donald, raging with infamous McDuck rage, grabbed one of the teens’ bikes and threw it after them while Della, equally enraged, beat the teen about his face. The twins were triumphant but their victory was tainted when a familiar limousine pulled up and stepped out an infuriated Uncle Scrooge.   

“WHAT IN DISMAL DOWNS ARE YOU TWO DOING?”

“They got what they deserved!” Donald shouted, still itching to fight.

“It was self-defense!” Growled Della. “We’re in the right! We didn’t do anything wrong!”

Scrooge shook his head. “To the manor. Now! March!”

Dutifully, the twins marched. They didn’t care of the angry muttering that Scrooge said under his breath. Once they reached the manor, Donald and Della were intent on going straight to their rooms.

“Oy! Where do you two think you’re going?”

“You’re going to ground us?”

It was a slap on the wrist. Scrooge was never home. The punishment would be easily broken.

“Ach, no! Look at yourselves! You two are bleeding!”

The twins were in fact bleeding. Donald had a nasty cut below his eye and Della was bleeding from her mouth. However, whether it was her blood or the blood of someone she bit was unclear. Into Scrooge’s office, the twins were herded. They sat on top of his desk while Scrooge, still muttering, got out the first aid kit.

“We didn’t do anything wrong,” Della said, breaking the unbearable silence between them.

“You didn’t do anything wrong? You don’t bite people, Della!” Scrooge reprimanded.

“You can bite people if they deserve it,” said Donald. “And they deserved it.”

“Nothing out of you!” Scrooge scolded. “You were throwing punches like a drunk.” He mimicked Donald’s incensed quacking. “That’s not how you fight!”

“What would you know about fighting?” snapped Della.

“I know more about fighting than the lot of you!”

“Yeah, right!” jeered Donald.

Scrooge threw down the first aid kit. “Get. Up.”

Donald jumped off the desk and purposefully landed on Scrooge’s feet. His uncle sneered.

“Say we’re in a fight,” Scrooge seethed. “What’s the first thing that you notice about me?”

“That you’re old,” said Donald and Della.

Scrooge shook his head. “No! It’s that I’m bigger. I’ve got height, weight, reach, and experience on you.” He jabbed Donald’s shoulder. “If you go into a fight with someone who’s bigger, stronger, and tougher than you,” he jabbed Donald again, “then you can never let them have the upper hand. You have to plan ahead. You can’t go swinging in like a madman!”

“It works!” Donald protested.

“Your punches lose momentum before you even hit your target. You work yourself up, tire yourself out, and you become an easy mark. If that was a real fight, you would have gotten beaten up.”

“You’re saying that wasn’t a real fight?” asked Della who wiped the blood, decidedly not her’s, on her sleeve.

“I’ve been in real fights. What you lot were in was a walk in the park.”

Della scoffed. “Some park…”

Scrooge sighed. “It might seem like a hard fight but there are rougher ones out there. Have you ever had to fight a polar bear while being snow blind? Now that’s a fight!”

“You’re making that up,” said Donald.

“I got the scars to prove it!” Scrooge put his left leg on his desk. Very faintly, almost invisible, there bite marks.

“Did it hurt?” Della asked in awe.

“Like something awful.”

Donald traced the scars. “So how do you win a fight like that?”

“Not by throwing punches like you did,” said Scrooge as he placed Donald back on the desk and started patching him and Della up. He started to tell his niece and nephew of his fight with the polar bear. They were enraptured by Scrooge’s retelling of fights, adventures, and of escaping near death experiences. Donald and Della had to admit that Scrooge was kind of cool.


End file.
